Safety device for drawing machines



Dec. 8, 1942. F. K. HENDRICKSON SAFETY DEVICE FOR DRAWING MACHINES Filed March 9, 1942 2 Shets-Sheet l- Dec. 1942- F. K. HENDRICKSON SAFETY DEVICE FOR DRAWING MACHINES 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 i/mr/zvm 5A0.) 71

Filed March 9, 1942 INVENTOR.

Patented Dec. 8, 1942 UNTED STATS PATENT SAFETY DEVICE FOR DRAWING MACHINES Fred K. Hendrickson, Worcester, Mass, assignor to Whitin Machine Works, Whitinsville, Mass., a. corporation of Massachusetts 1 Application March 9, 1942, Serial No. 433,945

3 Claims. (Cl

This invention relates to machines inwhich drawing operations are performed on cotton, wool or other textile fibers.

Such drawing operations are performed under pressure obtained by applying tension to the upper drawing rolls, and it is undesirable that this tension be released so long as the drawing machine is operating. on the other hand, it is desirable that the tension be restored before the machine is again rendered operative.

. It is the general object of my invention to make it impossible to start the drawing machine in operation until the tension has been applied to the upper drawing rolls, and also to make it impossible to release the tension so long as the machine is in operation. To the accomplishment of this general object, my invention comprises the improved safety device herein shown and described.

My invention further relates to certain arrangements and combinations of parts which will be hereinafter described and more particularly pointed out in the appended claims.

A preferred form of the invention is shown in the drawings, in which Fig. 1 is a back elevation of a drawing machine embodying my improvements;

Fig. 2 is an enlarged sectional end elevation, taken along the line 2-2 in Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a View similar to Fig. 2 but with certain parts omitted and with the tension releasing device in a different position;

Fig. 4 is an enlarged back elevation of certain parts shown in Fig. 1; and

Fig. 5 is a view similar to Fig. 4 but showing the'parts in a different operative relation.

Referring to the drawings, I have shown a frame F for a drawing machine having the usual successive pairs of drawing rolls l and H, with the lower rolls H) preferably fluted and positively rotated, and with the upper rolls smooth and free to rotate with the rolls Ill.

The upper rolls II are preferably made in single width units covered with leather ,or other soft material, and each roll or unit H is provided with a tension device at each end by which the roll H is pressed firmly against its associated roll l0 when the machine is in operation.

Each tension device comprises a link 14 (Fig. 2) hooked into the upper end of a tension member l normally pressed downward by a coil spring IS. The members l5 are slotted at their lower ends, as indicated at ||,to receive lifting bars l8 which extend longitudinally of the machine as shown in Fig. 1 and which have their ends supported on releasing rolls 20 which are eccentrically mounted on'a gudgeon 2| (Fig. 3) and a rod 22.

The gudgeon 2| and rod 22 are rotatably mounted in fixed bearings 23, and the outer end of the rod 22 is bent to provide an operating handle 24. The outer end of the gudgeon 2| has a segmental disc 25 mounted thereon and keyed thereto.

When the releasing rolls 20 are in the lower position shown in Fig.2, the lifter bars l8 clear the upper ends of the slots l1, so that the springs l6 are free to apply drawing tension to the upper drawing rolls H. When the releasing rolls 20 are shifted to the raised position shown in Fig. 3, the lifter bars I8 raise the tension members l5, so that'the upper ends of said membersare free from the links l4 and the tensioin on the drawing rolls H is thus released.

The front lower drawing roll H7 is provided with a pulley 30 driven by a belt 3| from a pulley 32 on a lower drive shaft 33. The other lower rolls H! are gear-driven from the front roll.

A loose pulley 34 (Fig. 1) is provided adjacent the tight pulley 30, and a shipper fork 48 controls the position of the belt 3|. The fork 40 is mounted on a slidab-le shipper rod 4| which is operated'by a shipper handle 42 to move the belt 3| from the tight to the loose pulley or viceversa.

The shipper fork to has a downwardly extending arm 44 formed integral therewith or attached thereto, and the arm 44 is provided at its lower end with a stud or plunger 45, loosely slidable through an opening in a supporting lug 46 on the bracket 41 which supports the bearing 23 for the gudgeon 2| previously described.

The plunger 45 is aligned with the segmental disc 25, and the disc 25 is provided with a slot or recess 48 which is aligned with the plunger 45 when the parts are in the position shown in Fig. 4, in which position the releasing roll ZBis lowered and the springs l6 (Fig. 2) are applying tension to the drawing rolls The disc 25 is also provided with limiting lugs or steps 50 and 5|, so disposed that when the stop 50 engages the lug 46 on the bracket 41 as shown in Fig. 4, the slot or recess 48 is aligned with the plunger 45 and the releasing roll 24] is in its lowered or inoperative position;

I When the stop 5| engages the lug 46 as shown in Fig. 5,

is in raised or tension-releasf with a disc 25 associated with the right-hand releasing roll 20 as viewed in Fig. 1.

With the parts constructed as above described, it will be evident that both the right-hand and left-hand releasing rolls 20 must be in the inoperative lowered position shown in Figs. 1 and 2 before the plunger 45 can be moved to the position shown in Fig. 4, with corresponding shifting of the belt 3| to the tight pulley 30. This accordingly insures that the upper drawing rolls l I shall be under tension before the machine is started in operation, and it also insures that the tension shall not be released until after the machine has been stopped, as it is impossible to move the handles 24 and discs 25 so long as the plungers 45 are in the recesses 48.

I have thus provided an extremely simple and eilective means of correlating the movements of the releasing rolls 20 and the shipper fork 40, and this correlation insures that the rolls 1 I shall be under tension whenever the machine is in operation and that the tension shall not be released until after the machine has been stopped.

Having thus described my invention and the advantages thereof, I do not wish to be limited to the details herein disclosed, otherwise than as set forth in the claims, but what I claim is:

1. In a drawing machine having drawing roll tension devices, a pair of pivoted tension-releasing devices and a slidable shipper rod, that improvement which comprises a disc angularly movable with each tension-releasing device and recessed in one part, plungers associated with said shipper rod and directly engaging said discs, the

recesses in said discs being aligned with said plungers and permitting operative movement of said shipper rod only when said tension devices are in operative condition and said drawing rolls are under tension, and limiting devices to stop said discs in such aligned positions.

2. In a drawing machine having drawing roll tension devices, a pair of pivoted tensionreleasing devices and a slidable shipper rod, that improvement which comprises a segmental disc angularly movable with each tension-releasing device and recessed in one part, plungers associated with said shipper rod and directly engaging said discs, the recesses in said discs being aligned vwith said plungers and permitting operative movement of said shipper rod only when said tension devices are in operative condition and said drawing, rolls are under tension, and a pair of lugs on each disc effective to engage a fixed abutment and to stop said disc in two limiting positions and with its recess aligned with the associated plunger in one of said positions.

3. In a drawing machine having drawing roll tension devices, a tension-releasing device pivoted to turn about an axis transverse to the axes of the drawing rolls, and a shipper rod slidable parallel to said drawing rolls, that improvement which comprises a disc fixed to and angularly movable with said tension releasing device and recessed in one edge portion, and a plunger secured to said shipper rod and directly engaging the periphery of said disc to positively prevent sliding movement of said shipper rod from non-driving position when said plunger is out of alignment with the edge recess in said disc, and said plunger holding said disc from angular tension-releasing movement when said plunger is in said recess. 5

FRED K. HENDRICKSON. 

